The Golden 1 Center had a different kind of energy.
Loud. Constant. West Coast fast.
From the opening tip, it felt like the Kings were playing on x2 speed. De'Aaron Fox didn't jog—he glided. Sabonis directed traffic like a quarterback in a no-huddle offense. Malik Monk came off screens like he had rockets in his shoes.
Zoran picked it up immediately.
"This isn't going to be a grind game," he told himself. "This is chess at 100 miles an hour."
[SYSTEM WARNING – TEMPO SPIKE DETECTED]✓ Opponent: Sacramento Kings✓ Primary Threat: De'Aaron Fox (Speed tier: Elite)✓ Recommendation: Minimize unnecessary dribbles, keep reads tight✓ Boost: Early Recognition +7%
He didn't start. Again, expected.
But midway through the first quarter, Dinwiddie caught an awkward elbow going up for a rebound and limped off. Kidd looked down the bench.
"Zoran. You're up."
The Kings were already up 17–10. Fox had 6 and 2 dimes. The game was flying.
Zoran ran to the scorer's table, locked in on who he'd be covering—Keon Ellis, the Kings' hustle wing, a pest on defense and a chaos agent on offense.
Perfect.
First possession.
Ellis tried to backcut. Zoran stayed attached, forced the pass wide.
Next play, Monk tried a dribble handoff. Zoran called it out early, bumped the screener, and forced a reset.
Nothing flashy. But he slowed them.
Just enough.
On offense, he wasn't hunting shots. He filled space. Slid into a gap when Sabonis helped on a P.J. roll, got the drop pass, flipped in a quick floater.
Next trip, Monk jumped the lane too hard—Zoran backdoored him and got the lay.
It wasn't about matching speed.
It was about knowing where the speed would go.
Halftime: Kings 56 – Mavericks 54Zoran: 6 PTS | 1 AST | 2 STL | 3/3 FG
Kidd didn't say much in the locker room. Just pointed at the board.
"Keep the ball moving. Zoran—good pace. Keep your feet under you."
Third quarter was where things got messy.
Fox got loose. Started hitting those snatchback middies. Monk caught fire briefly. Sacramento stretched the lead to 10.
But the Mavericks didn't panic.
Late in the third, Zoran got switched onto Fox for the first time. The crowd noticed. So did the Kings bench.
Fox looked at him, smirked. "You sure?"
Zoran didn't say anything.
He just mirrored him. Watched his hips.
Fox hit him with an in-and-out. Zoran stayed attached.
Pull-up three. Contested.
Clank.
Fox didn't smile after that.
Fourth quarter, game tight again. 91–89 Kings.
Zoran slid back in with 6:12 left.
Dallas ran a stagger set to free Dinwiddie. The defense collapsed. Zoran leaked into the corner.
Catch. Release.
Three.
Bang.
Final minute.
Tie game.
Sabonis slipped a screen, got the pocket pass. Looked like a sure layup.
Zoran dropped down from the weak side and stripped it clean—no foul, all ball.
Fast break. Kick ahead to Washington. Dunk.
Mavericks up two.
Final Score: Mavericks 105 – Kings 103Zoran:→ 13 PTS→ 3 STL→ 2 AST→ 5/6 FG→ 1/1 3PT→ +8 Plus-Minus
Social media noticed.
"Zoran Vranes is a system. Not flashy. Just effective."